The present invention is directed to a device for unlocking a resilient prestressed catch element on a side of an insert unit. When the insert unit is inserted into a card cage or rack, the catch element is engaged by a sliding motion into a catch opening of the card rack as a result of a spring power.
Catch elements for an insert unit enables, first, a stable fastening of the insert unit into the card rack and, second, a rapid replacement of the insert unit by another. A typical application is in the electrical industry when equipping control boxes or cabinets with insert units that accept different electronic devices, for example disk drives or floppy disk drives. When replacing one such device by another, the insert unit is unlocked, then pulled from the cabinet, and the device held by the insert unit is replaced by another. Subsequently, the insert unit is reintroduced into the switch box or cabinet and is locked therein by the catch element.
In a known device, the user must feel the catch element with his finger and unlock it with finger pressure. What is disadvantageous given such a device is that an opening for the finger must be provided between the card rack and the insert unit and that the unlocking requires considerable dexterity on the part of the user. Consequently, a complicated manipulation with the insert unit or an unfavorable utilization of the available space offered overall by the card rack must be accepted.